What�s the point of the new copy protection?

Gandalf Parker · #1 February 14th, 2007, 02:37 PM

Discussions of the copy protection dont tend to last long. But this is the publishers forum so I dont hav a problem with that.

But just for now.. Umm.. are you sure thats the action? All the tests I can do seem to just say that it wont work with a bad key. Ive seen guesswork that some bad events might be a bad key but I havent been able to duplicate it. But I do tink they should do some simple cryptograhy with the key file.

On the other hand, if they were to do something interesting I remember one game (I think it was a space game) that a bad key meant you got a load of the games bad events piled on you every turn.

Baalz · #2 February 14th, 2007, 02:50 PM

I know that I stepped in to sub in a MP game because the previous player was "having problems" with the 3.06 patch. First turn I step in I get a message (based on the previous turn, the one I didn't play) that the CD key was bad, so no orders had been processed. Guess we know what problems the guy was having.

Turin · #3 February 14th, 2007, 03:12 PM

Johan K mentions the bug being copyprotection in this thread:
http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/thr...b=5&o=&fpart=1

Heh if not even Gandalf Parker, a moderator of the board knows about this, how is the casual pirate supposed to figure out the game is wonky because of copyprotection.

Gandalf Parker · #4 February 14th, 2007, 03:33 PM

Hmm I still cant dupicate it that way.

By the way, moderator isnt based on knowledge. Expert moderators tend to create an unsocial forum. They dont moderate (I mean the definition of the word) very well.

Loren · #5 February 14th, 2007, 03:50 PM

It doesn't sounds like a very good way to do it, either.

For a good way to do it, consider the ancient game "Stars!". If it detected key problems you would have problems with your orders because there was doubt as to whether you were the true ruler of your empire. (I forget the wording of the message and never even saw it myself, just discussions of it.) IIRC if you didn't fix it units started defecting also.

Don't make it buggy, make it disobedient.

Twan · #6 February 14th, 2007, 03:59 PM

People at http://forums.somethingawful.com/ pay to register on a forum but not for games. It may be a religious thing, or perhaps psychiatric, nothing can be done imho.

Nick_K · #7 February 14th, 2007, 04:16 PM

This is definitely deliberate?? If so, it seems to have been implemented buggily, as I've had it a few times and my copy is direct from shrapnel.

Velusion · #8 February 14th, 2007, 04:28 PM

I can confirm this is apparently a cd-key protection/bug.

I own the game, and at one point I installed it at work from the CD. I forgot the manual so I just hopped on the "internets" and got a key. It was running fine at work until 3.06 came out and it started to bug out exactly as was described. So I deinstalled it and reinstalled it with my good key and worked just fine.

Personally I think its an awesome Copy-write protection for the game to allow you to play for a little while and then pop up with a message saying something like "We hope like the game... please buy it!" and quit. Unfortuantly it just bugs out.

My thought is that this wasn't intended, as it would be a quite silly protection idea as it looks exactly like a bug. If I didn't see it listed in the forums I would have assumed Dom3 is the problem - not the cd-key.

tombom · #9 February 14th, 2007, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Twan said:
People at http://forums.somethingawful.com/ pay to register on a forum but not for games. It may be a religious thing, or perhaps psychiatric, nothing can be done imho.

What are you talking about? Nobody there encourages piracy, which is banned on sight. There is no reason that people there pirate more compared to anywhere else and there have been threads which have encouraged other people to buy the game.

Oh wait I just checked the thread I see what you mean

Edi · #10 February 14th, 2007, 04:23 PM

Quote:

Gandalf Parker said:
Hmm I still cant dupicate it that way.

By the way, moderator isnt based on knowledge. Expert moderators tend to create an unsocial forum. They dont moderate (I mean the definition of the word) very well.

That depends on what you regard as expert moderators. An expert as a moderator can easily work as long as he/she can keep the expertise and the social aspect of moderator duties separated and has both the maturity and temperament to enable him to avoid appealing to his own authority. Sadly, there are rather few who can avoid both pitfalls. Usually you just get one or the other but not both. Accountability is also a big issue. A moderator who abuses power has to be immediately and permanently stripped of his rank and privileges or abuses will happen.

As long as you have the right setup in place, things can run well. It'll be impossible to accommodate everyone, of course, but it is not impossible by any stretch to get it to work.

Edi